1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle interior lighting system which is installed in the ceiling of a vehicle compartment.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 1 shows a conventional example of the vehicle interior lighting system which is installed in the ceiling of the compartment (see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-175765).
This vehicle interior lighting system 200 includes: a main illuminator 210 configured to illuminate a wide area in the compartment; two spot illuminators 220 each configured to illuminate a narrow area in the compartment; and a switch 230, which are provided to a designed cover 201 attached to the ceiling wall of a vehicle. The main illuminator 210 is provided with multiple LEDs 211 functioning as a light source and an outer lens 212. Each spot illuminator 220 is provided with an LED (not illustrated) and an outer lens 222.
In the conventional vehicle interior lighting system 200, each of the illuminators 210, 220 and 220 is equipped with at least one LED. This increases the number of parts, thus causing weight and cost increase. Furthermore, the two spot illuminators 220 tend to exhibit unevenness in color and illuminance even if two LEDs with the same color are used for the two spot illuminators 220, because the two LEDs vary from each other. This may cause difference in appearance among illuminated areas depending on which LED to be used.